This Is War
by FallenCyanide
Summary: When Danielle Quinn enters a competition hosted by her favorite gaming company, she doesn't hesitate to enter. Once there, she meets five people who will change her life forever. She just doesn't know it yet. (characters based off of Avengers, Supernatural, YouTube, Portal, and a few other things)
1. Chapter 1

I banged on the door of the apartment I shared with my brother, annoyed at the lack of a response. "Open this damn door or I'll rip it off its hinges again!" I yelled, hearing his heavy footsteps a few seconds later. The door creaked open, and I was greeted with the tired face of my brother, Erin.

"I was trying to _sleep_, Dani. You should try it sometime. At the very least, get a key," he complained, making me groan as I pushed Erin aside. I set down the bags I was carrying and turned back to him.

"You're welcome for buying the groceries _again_, so you could sleep while everyone else is at work, Erin," I replied, checking my watch. "Which you might not get to do much longer, if you keep being late. It's already seven thirty."

He swore loudly and rushed back into the other room, which left me laughing while I unpacked the recently-bought food. By the time he had come back in, I had finished and sat down on the couch to play Borderlands 2.

He spoke to me as he put his coat on, saying, "There's a flyer on the counter in the kitchen; some chick at work last night told me her sister's company was having a competition or something. The prize is pretty sweet, if you want to check it out."

"Thanks. Hurry up; you're already going to be late," I replied, keeping my eyes on the screen as my brother opened the door. He slammed it shut, nearly sending the television to the floor.

"Watch it!" I yelled after him, turning away from the screen just as I was attacked, resulting in my death. I threw the controller down and decided to get something to eat. As I entered the kitchen, the brightly-colored flyer on the countertop caught my attention.

_This Is W.A.R._  
_Hosted by Pegasus Gaming, Inc._

**_W_**_ork ethnicity, __**A**__dvanced intellect, and __**R**__eality simulations._

_This competition will test an individual's ability to work as a team, their brain power, and how possible situations are handled._

_Competitors will be split into groups based on how a panel of judges reflect upon their abilities after they complete their first assessment._

_Each team will have six members. If you qualify, you will be assigned to a team. A captain will also be assigned. The winning team receives one million dollars for each member, along with a position at Pegasus Gaming, Inc._

_Applications can be filled out online at: __ thisiswar_

_Maybe we can buy a new apartment_, I thought to myself, and went back to making my dinner.

* * * * * * * * * * * *

I had confined myself to my bedroom with my computer and a bowl of ramen noodles, where I fell victim to the depths of the Internet once again. There was a lot of talk about this "W.A.R." competition, meaning it would be difficult to get in, _if_ I decided to enter. There also seemed to be two groups of people: those who were overly-excited for the competition, and those who didn't give a shit. I wasn't sure which group I was leaning towards.

Typing in the URL listed on the flyer, I read over all of the rules, guidelines, and extra information. It was just typical contest rules, which were a bit boring, to be honest. After clicking on the application section, I set my bowl down and read through the guidelines for the application.

It asked for basic information about myself. The section for my name, where I live, family members, and the submit button at the bottom were fairly normal. The application questions were organized in a simple format, which was a little annoying. Complicated wasn't confusing for me most of the time. The part that I really didn't understand was the very last question.

_Pick the word that best describes you._

The question itself made sense. It was the answers that threw me off.

_civilian_

_soldier_

_influential_

_honest_

_reclusive_

_triumphant_

I looked over each answer, considering each of them. _I guess they're not _that _boring_, I thought. My cursor hovered over the second option, considering if they put this answer as joke. The competition _was _called 'WAR', after all.

"Why not?"

* * * * * * * * * * * *

"Bryce! Get in here!" I called out happily. His face appeared in the doorway, and he didn't seem the least bit annoyed that I had yelled at him. I only checked my email once a week, so I almost didn't get the one telling me that I had to leave early the next morning.

"Did ya get in?" he asked, and I nodded enthusiastically. He grinned. "That's my girl. When d'ya leave?"

"This email says they booked a flight for me tomorrow morning," I replied. "Oh, this is so exciting! I didn't think I'd get in…"

"I'll be waiting for ya when ya get back, got it? I'll even pay ya while you're gone," Bryce told me, disappearing around the corner again, but not before I caught a glimpse of the phoenix tattoo I had done on the side of his neck. I put my phone in my pocket and followed him out to the front of the parlor, grinning like the idiot I was.

"I'll miss ya, Dani. Don't kiss too many guys, ya hear me?" he joked, though I could hear a hint of truthfulness in his tone. I wrapped my arms around him.

"I'll try my best, Bry," I replied, grinning at him. He smiled back, and I pushed the front door open, enjoying the sound of the bell one last time before I left. Bryce blew a kiss at me as I skipped backwards down the sidewalk, and I laughed, pretending to catch it. He wasn't my boyfriend, per se, but we looked out for each other. We've known each other since elementary school.

After turning a corner, I settled into a fast-paced walk, hoping to get home in enough time to pack and play a bit of Portal or Left 4 Dead before I had to leave again to get to the airport at four-thirty.

When I got to my apartment complex, I unlocked my mailbox and pulled out the package I had hoped had been there. I checked the top of the box and smiled. 'Pegasus Gaming, Inc.' was listed in the top left corner, with my name in the center. I bolted up the stairs, knowing I didn't have the patience for the incredibly sluggish elevator, and only slowed when I reached the seventh floor.

I reached my apartment and opened the door that Erin usually left locked. I saw he was sleeping on the couch and sighed, knowing that meant he had been fired. Again. I shut it carefully, not wanting him to wake up, nor the television to fall from its rickety stand, and ran to my room. Setting the package down on my desk, I found my pocketknife and sliced the top of the box open.

Inside, there was a sheet of paper that congratulated me on entering the competition and told me my housing unit and time of arrival. It also said that the competition would last about three months, but instructed us to pack lightly, since clothes would be provided. Underneath that, there was a T-shirt, a hoodie, and…

…a laptop. A brand-new, HD laptop.

And it was mine.

I stared at it for a minute, too happy to even think properly. Eventually, I regained my composure and grabbed a bag from my closet. I shoved the T-shirt, hoodie, and two of my favorite shirts, plus my blue jeans into it.

I dropped it at the foot of my bed and parked myself at the opposite end with the new laptop. I opened it slowly, as if I would break it if I went any faster, and pressed the power button at the top of the keyboard. The screen lit up.

It took less than thirty seconds to get to the welcome page, and I cherished the efficiency of the new computer. I entered the necessary information and Internet key, which only took about a minute. Another page came up that read 'touch screen calibration'.

Touch screen? I tapped a few dots on the screen and laughed a little. It may seem childish, but I've never had anything with an interactive screen, and it was awesome.

When it was fully loaded, I downloaded a few pictures and changed the background, grinning.

This is gonna be fun.

* * * * * * * * * * * *

Nine hours later, I stood in the middle of a large complex consisting of three main buildings. There were five smaller ones, each a different color: red, yellow, green, blue, and purple. I looked down at the paper in my hand, double-checking my temporary home before gripping the slip tightly.

I pulled my short brown hair into a ponytail and carried my bag towards the fourth house. Upon opening the bright blue door, I discovered that one of my teammates was already there. A blonde-haired girl looked up at me and smiled.

"'Sup?" she said, waving. "I'm Shannon, by the way."

"Oh, hey, I'm, uh, Danielle," I replied awkwardly. I didn't expect the fact that she had a British accent.

"That's a pretty cool name! Want me to show you to your room? They're kinda badass."

I smiled at the girl. "Sure, go ahead."

"This place is really nice," Shannon replied, bounding up the stairs. I followed after a moment, chuckling to myself. At the top, I tried opening the first door, but it was locked. The second one opened easily, and I stepped inside.

Stopping short in the doorway, I looked around at everything. It was a large room, with a high ceiling and a queen-sized bed. There was a large window on one wall, casting rays of light into the dark blue room and matching bed.

"Like it? Mine looks a little different, but yours is my second favorite," Shannon said, pushing me fully into the room.

"It's amazing…" I whispered, stunned. After a few moments, she continued.

"I'll let you unpack. Let me know if you need anything!" Shannon replied, walking out of the room and disappearing.

I sighed and flopped back on my new bed. Five minutes in and I was already exhausted? Not a good sign.

Humming to myself, I put my things in the chest at the foot of the bed. I was a bit of a neat freak, but organizing my things didn't take very long since I didn't bring much. I started headed back downstairs when I heard the door open and a male voice say, "Um, hello?"

Shannon didn't reply, but I heard a noise from the other room that sounded like metal hitting the floor, and then her loud voice scream out, "Aw, fuck!" in a disappointed tone. I laughed and the boy looked up at me, his light brown hair hanging down in front of his face. He swept it aside and looked up at me.

"Hey, I'm Danielle. That voice you just heard is the lovely Shannon," I explained, and he smiled.

"I'm Ryan. I like your name," he said shyly, blushing a little.

"Thanks," I replied, blushing a bit as well. We stood silently for a moment before Shannon came back in, looking upset. "What were you doing in there?"

"Well, I was hungry, so I wanted to eat something, right? I remembered I packed Nutella, since they probably wouldn't have it, but I didn't want to spill it in my room, so I came down here, and… I tripped in the kitchen and my spoon got all dirty!" she explained, making Ryan and me laugh.

"It's not funny, you dicks! Oh, wait, sorry—what's your name?" the girl said, her face red from embarrassment.

"It's okay, really. I'm Ryan. Danielle told me that you're… 'The lovely Shannon'?"

"Yep. That's me, all right. You don't happen to have a clean spoon with you, do you?" she replied, and we laughed again.

"No, sorry. Can I, um…" he motioned towards the stairs, and I moved out of the way.

"Yeah, sorry. I don't know which one is yours, but mine is second from the top of the stairs," I told him.

Shannon added, "Mine's third. Go in there and there's no promise that you'll leave this competition alive!" He nodded, grinned, and went upstairs as I turned to her.

"Nutella? Really?"

"Nutella is _amazing_, okay? Don't question it! To question Nutella is to question life!" she screamed, and I laughed again, earning a shove that nearly sent me crashing to the floor. My Portal 2 hat fell off, but I managed to catch it before it touched the ground.

"You could have at least packed a second spoon," I added, making her yell as she angrily stormed out of the room. She came back in a moment later, looking sheepish.

"There's nothing to do in there," she whispered, and my palm connected with my face.

"You could always just clean the spoon, you know."

"Shut the f-"

She stopped when she heard footsteps on the stairs that were too light to be Ryan's. A young male smiled up at us. "Hi! I'm Castiel. You're being really loud, you know. You should be more considerate of your teammates. After all, you only just met," he said in a rush, and we looked at him, dumbfounded.

"Oh, uh… sorry. Ryan is upstairs. I'm Shannon, and this is Dani," she said, motioning to me. "I knew someone named Castiel once, actually."

"Really? Well, it's nice to meet you, ladies! Have you settled in yet?" he asked, and I spoke up.

"Yeah. How exactly did you get in here?" I asked a bit rudely. He smiled at me again.

"I got here when you were yelling about Nutella. I didn't really have anything to unpack, and when I came back down, you were still yelling. I hate yelling. Can't you just handle a simple situation rationally?"

We stood in silence, unsure of what to say. Eventually, Ryan came back downstairs and Castiel shifted his focus to the poor boy. We managed to sneak into the kitchen while he lectured Ryan about his shaggy hair.

The window over the sink slid open, and Shannon and I sighed. A dark-skinned girl looked up at us. "Hey, I'm Jodie," she said, walking in-between the two of us. "This is a nice place. Where's the stairs?"

"In the front. Why'd you come in through the _window_?" I asked, not thinking to introduce myself.

"I felt like it. Who are you?" she replied, just as snotty as I had been.

"Danielle," I replied, smiling.

"Shannon. Just follow the sound of arguing boys. You'll find them eventually." She walked into the other room, leaving Shannon and me alone in the kitchen.

"There's still one more, isn't there?" I said, walking into the other room. Sure enough, a light-haired, lanky kid sat on the couch, eyes closed. He seemed to sense our presence and sat up quickly.

"Hey, kid. I'm Danielle, and this is Shannon. When did you get here?" I said, hopefully for the last time.

"Just now. And my name's Steve, thank you very much," he said, standing up. His voice had a thick British accent, not like Shannon's soft one.

"Got it. My room's second, Shannon's is third. Have fun up there," I told him. Steve had moved towards the foot of the stairs, and a bag had materialized in his hand. Shannon stared at him as he left, totally transfixed by him for some reason.

"Shannon? You okay?" I asked her, and she smiled at me.

"I think I'm in looooove~" she sang, dancing goofily around the room.

"In _love_? With _him_? Really?" She stopped and looked at me.

"Do not question that which has been fated!" Shannon said in a high-pitched tone, and we laughed.

I sat down where Steve had been, and Shannon planted herself next to me. I sighed. "The next three months are going to be _fun_."

"With that attitude, there's no doubt about it," she replied, just as sarcastic as me. "What do you think it's gonna be like? What exactly will we be doing in there?" she added after a few moments of silence.

"I have no idea."


	2. Chapter 2

A lady by the name of Veronica stopped by an hour after everyone had settled in and happily told us that we weren't scheduled for anything tonight, but we were going to meet the other teams and the head of the company, Maria, and her assistant, Alex, tomorrow morning. They're the biggest female icons in the gaming industry, and with reason. They're pretty badass.

She also said we were on our own for dinner, but all expenses would be paid by the company, so 'someone' ordered pizza ('someone' being Shannon). Go figure.

Jodie was the one who brought up the swimming pool out back, which sent everyone except for Steve and me to our rooms. He looked at me and asked, "Aren't you going swimming?"

I instantly replied, "I don't have a swimsuit," even though that wasn't my real excuse. He accepted it regardless and walked out the back door. I followed and sat as far away from the water as I could and waited for everyone to come out.

Steve leaned on the wall next to me with his hands in his pockets awkwardly as we waited. "Why aren't _you_ going to swim?" I asked eventually, trying to break the silence.

He looked away from me and hunched his shoulders, agitated. "I don't want to talk about it," he muttered, his voice quivering slightly. I looked down at my hands, wanting to apologize, but not knowing how.

I started to say something just as Jodie, Ryan, Cas, and Shannon came rushing outside, laughing and shoving each other. Everyone but Shannon jumped into the pool, and she tried to wave me over to her.

"C'mon, Dani! Come swim with us!" she called, and I shook my head.

"Sorry, Shannon. I don't want Mister Grumpy Pants over here to be lonely," I yelled back, glancing at Steve for a second to see him smiling a little. I grinned back as Shannon disappeared under the water.

Steve crouched down in front of me and stared at my face. I stared back, slightly uncomfortable. His lips curled into a smile and he leaned back. "You're an interesting person, Danielle," he said.

"Thanks?" I replied as he walked back inside. I sat silently for a few minutes before Shannon called to me again.

"Dani, come on! The water feels great, you know," she tried, and I resolved to at least come closer to it. A few of the chairs were shaded by the house, since the sun was starting to lower, so I sat in the one farthest from the pool.

Shannon swam over to the edge near me and leaned on it. "Don't make me splash you," she threatened, and I glared at her.

"If you do, I'll have no choice but to get you back," I warned, but she laughed and splashed me anyway.

We stayed out until we could barely see, but we didn't go to sleep right away. While the others were getting dried, Steve and I stole their swimsuits and clothes, leaving them with only their towels. Needless to say, they were a little pissed off for the rest of the night, even after we returned them.

The next morning, their bitterness was gone, replaced with excitement. Veronica came back, just as cheerful and upbeat as she was the previous night, but with less to say. "Hello again, everyone. This morning, as you may recall from last night, we will meet with the other teams and the head of the company hosting this competition. Follow me, and we'll get started!"

We did as she asked and made our way across the asphalt, looking around at everything we had seen yesterday. Veronica held the door to the main building open for us, smiling.

"I hope you don't mind, but we're a little early. I thought you might want to look around before the other teams got a chance to," she explained. "Meet me back down here in half an hour, okay? Maria will be annoyed if we're late."

We agreed and ran off like little kids on a playground. Steve was nowhere in sight, but the rest of us stuck together as we acquainted ourselves with the huge building. Shannon pulled me to the front of the pack and pointed out everything around us, even though we were seeing the same things. I laughed at her enthusiasm, but didn't say anything.

Half an hour disappeared quickly, and all too soon we were standing back in the main lobby with the other teams. There wasn't any specific order to which group went first, and since we had gotten there early, the other teams let us go first so they could look around.

After we all piled into the elevator, we headed to the top floor. Shannon hadn't lost any of her eagerness, and had managed to make Castiel just as excited. They talked impatiently as the elevator rose, and Jodie, Ryan, and I exchanged glances, amused. Even Steve had a smile on his face.

The elevator dinged, and Veronica stepped out in front of us, leading us down a hallway and stopping in front of a large reception-like desk. She whispered something to a young boy with an odd, bird-like mask and a black and red shirt sitting there, and he nodded and disappeared down another corridor. "One moment, everyone. When our friend returns, then we can meet the one who created this competition!" Veronica told us, and Shannon's eyes lit up.

"That boy was Lurar, you know," she whispered. "Supposedly, Maria found him after he escaped from some science facility or something. He fell in love with one of the game developers, but she thinks he's really creepy." She continued on for a few minutes before Lurar returned and said something to Veronica. He cast a nervous glance at us before sitting back down behind the desk and fiddling with something we couldn't see.

He popped up again and handed something to Veronica before she started to walk towards the door Lurar had gone into before, and we followed. Shannon waved at him as we walked by, and he cocked his head to the side, as if he was confused as to why anyone was interested in him.

Maria waved at us as we entered and smiled, readjusting her glasses. She had on a baggy hoodie and jeans, which would have surprised me, but I had watched a few interviews and she didn't seem to wear anything else. Veronica shut the door and Maria thanked her. "Hello, everyone," she said with an accent that I couldn't place, though it sounded a little French. "Welcome to Pegasus Gaming Incorporated."

She paused and looked at all of us. Shannon grinned like an idiot, and Maria smiled at her, which made her smile even more. "I'm Maria, as you may or may not know. My friend and assistant here…" she said, motioning to a girl sleeping in the corner and laughing. "Her name is-"

"Alex," Shannon said, her hand flying to her mouth. Maria smiled at her again and nodded. "I'm sorry, I just…"

"It's fine, really. What's your name?" she replied, and Shannon grinned again.

"I… Shannon," she answered quietly, and Maria pulled her over to stand next to her. Shannon was much taller than her, but it didn't bother either of them.

"Well, Shannon, what are your friends' names?" Maria asked.

She didn't hesitate to reply. She pointed to each of us in turn and said our names, but she didn't really seem capable of saying anything else. "Thank you, Shannon. I hope you all enjoy this competition, and I look forward to seeing you again."

Veronica led us out of the room, but not before whispering something to Maria. She nodded, her smile fading a little, but it reappeared as soon as she heard Shannon talking to Cas. I waved to her, a silent thank you for making her so happy. She nodded again and shut the door quietly. As we headed back towards the elevator, I heard muffled arguing that I could only guess was her attempts at waking Alex.

I smiled to myself as we made our way back to the lobby. The other groups had returned during our visit, and the elevator was quickly filled moments after we had exited. Taking a look at the other groups kept the smile on my face. Everyone was so happy, so excited, and it was wonderful to see.

Suddenly, Ryan was nudging me with his elbow. "Why are you so happy? Did you steal something?" he asked, a stupid grin spreading across his face. I laughed and shook my head.

"Why? Are you looking to trade with me?" I replied, and he shrugged.

"Depends. Whatcha got?" He pulled his hand out of his pocket and showed me a portable game console.

"Dude!" I laughed, snatching the small, black brick out of his hand and flipping it over to check for a name, but it was blank. "Is this a prototype or something?"

"Aw, come on, give it back, Dani! I haven't really looked at it yet!" he whined, and I placed in back in his outstretched hand.

"You should probably put that back, you know," I told him, sitting down on one of the couches near the door. He sat down next to me and flipped it open.

"No way, not until I've played it," he replied, turning the screen on with a switch on the side. The menu came on and displayed a ring of square icons. One had a wrench, a different one had a globe, another had a book, and the last one had wings. We glanced at each other before he slid a stylus out of the side and tapped the wing icon.

The circle disappeared and was replaced with another loop of five icons surrounding one round, gray icon. "Tap it," I said, even though he was already about to. We both expected the screen to alter, but neither screen changed. He tapped it again and sighed.

"You might want this," a voice said, and I looked up to see Maria standing in front of us, holding something in her hand. She tossed it to me, and I glanced down at it. A game.

Ryan had covered the system instinctively with his hands when he realized who it was. "Fuck, um… hey, Maria…" he stuttered, and I laughed and showed it to him.

"Dude, it's cool." I handed it to him and looked back up at her. "It's cool, right?" She nodded and smiled.

"It's fine, really. If you're good enough to steal it, you deserve it. You were each going to get one anyway," she explained, and I noticed two boxes stacked at her feet. She picked them up and handed the little pile to me. "Alex was supposed to give them to you when you came upstairs, but, uh…"

Maria cleared her throat awkwardly and continued, "Go ahead and pick one of each." She looked around and spotted Veronica conversing with Shannon and the others and added, "Veronica should have the chargers for you."

"What are they called?" I asked, since they didn't have a sticker or anything on them.

"AIRS," she said. "Awesome Independent Recreational Systems."

"Well, they seem pretty awesome so far," I joked, and she smiled.

I opened one of the cardboard flaps. The box was full of so many different colored consoles. I picked a red one, set the package on the ground, and replaced it with the second box. Maria leaned forward and whispered, "You guys can pick two each. I don't think the others will mind, and we have a lot of extras."

"Wow, really? Thank you!" I laughed, almost to myself, and looked at all of the different games. I dug through it for a few seconds before pulling out a colorful package. The label on it read, "Kaleidoscope".

"That's for drawing and animating," she offered, and I set it next to me on the couch. "It has an online gallery, too."

"You guys are so awesome, these games all sound so incredible," I said, laughing at how much I sounded like Shannon.

"Thank you, Danielle," she replied, and I glanced up at her.

"You remember my name?" I asked, astounded.

"I met you a few minutes ago, how could I have forgotten?"

"Right, sorry," I apologized. She smiled and I decided on a game called, "Immortal". The label had a dragon and an angel on the front, and Maria's eyes lit up when she saw it.

"I remember that one! It was so fun to make, with the angels and dragons and everything!" she gushed, and I smiled.

"So I should take it, then?" I asked.

"Yes! It's one of my favorites, definitely," she said, so I set it down on top of Kaleidoscope and passed the box to Ryan. He quickly looked through it and grabbed another copy of Immortal, and his stupid grin returned.

"I love dragons," he explained, and I glanced at the back of my copy.

"It says you can play with other people. I am so gonna beat your ass, Ryan," I laughed, shoving him. He shoved me right back and passed the box to Maria. I handed the other one to her and thanked her.

She smiled and walked over to Veronica, handing her the boxes and telling her what to do with them before walking back into the elevator and waving at Ryan and me. We waved back as the doors shut and she disappeared. I stood up, shoving the copy of Kaleidoscope in my pocket, and walked over to the rest of the group.

"Shannon," I said, and she looked up at me from her green AIRS. She grinned.

"How awesome is this? Free video games! It's a miracle! And straight from Maria herself! You would never believe how happy I am right now, Dani," she exploded, and I sat down next to her on the window ledge.

I showed her my red AIRS and Immortal, and she continued, "I haven't gotten the second box yet, but I'll totally get that. Angels are the shit." Eventually she managed to get the box and pulled out the same two games I had.

"Do you think I get away with taking both of these?" she whispered, and I shrugged. "I don't want to take more than she gave us, and I don't want to run out or anything…"

"It's fine. Maria said there were extras, and besides…" I pulled Kaleidoscope out and showed her before putting it back in my pocket. "She said Ryan and I could take extra, so why can't you?"

She put the small box into one of her vest's pockets where it didn't stand out and put a finger to her lips. I pretended to zip my lips shut and we smiled at each other.

About an hour later, Ryan, Shannon, and I were sitting in a circle and arguing about whether dragons or angels were superior. Castiel and Jodie had picked different games, so they weren't playing with us, but they added their own thoughts to the mix.

Steve sat far enough to not be expected to contribute to our conversation, but close enough to listen. I glanced over at him and saw his game reflecting on his glasses. It was difficult to make out, but I saw a mainly gray room with blue and orange occasionally. I didn't bother asking what game it was; Portal. It had to be. How Maria had converted Portal into her own game, I had no idea, but I was a bit jealous that I hadn't seen it in the box.

Ryan knocked my angel character out of the sky and I returned my focus to the screen. "Dick," I muttered, and he laughed.

"Angels are far less superior to dragons and must pay for their crimes against dragon-kind!" he responded, and I snuck up on him and shoved my Angel Blade into his neck.

"Sorry, what were you saying, Dragon Boy?" I replied, laughing cruelly and looting his dead body. The words "End of Round 6" flashed on the screen, and I looked around at my friends. Ryan and Jodie glared at me, Shannon and Castiel high-fived me, and Maria and Alex walked out of the elevator. We stopped our celebrating and turned towards them.

"Attention, everyone," she said loudly. Everyone turned towards her and stopped talking. "A practice simulation will be held this afternoon at four PM. Please report back here at that time, and we will get started then. Have a wonderful day!" Maria waved at us before disappearing into the elevator again.

"So, we have until four to beat your asses as much as possible, then!" Shannon exclaimed, and we started our banter again, happy to stab each other in the back for the next few hours.


End file.
